This is it.

He's angry, at himself, at Will, at the universe.

He's been angry, even as he's worked to help her find him. The man that kept her alive all those months. The man that she'd fallen in love with in those months on that alien planet.

She hasn't told him that but she doesn't have to. He knows her. He can see in her eyes whenever she talks about him, whenever they talk about the portal.

Yes, he's angry about it. But he doesn't blame her. How could he?

He sees that same look in her eyes, the one that told him how she feels, why she wants, no needs to get back there. She's reading, doing more research. Research, it's all she does now that she's become reaccustomed to the base.

Something inside him just snaps. The anger inside him boils over and he's yelling at her. And then she's yelling back at him. All the words they'd both kept buried inside coming to the surface, hidden behind their talk of Will.

He can't help himself. Everything he's been keeping locked up is suddenly coming to light. The jealousy. The hurt. The anger. The love.

He's angry but this is it. This is his shot. He takes a step forward, a deep breath. Then it's happening.

His lips are on hers and his hands are pulling her closer. He can feel her stiffen from the surprise of what he's doing. For a moment, that voice in the back of his head that's yelled at him for so long keeping him quiet starts shouting again. But he fights it this time. He doesn't stop.

This is his shot. He's not going to waste it.

And then he feels her move ever so slightly forward. She's not pulling away. Not only that but she wants this. Just maybe.

That does it.

He pulls back suddenly, the reality of his actions finally hitting him.

Her eyes lock onto his, neither one looking away as they stand, still just a few feet apart, breathing heavily.

This was a bad idea.

Maybe he was wrong. Maybe she didn't really want this.

The seconds drag on, each one feeling like an eternity covered in a heavy blanket of silence.

And then she's moving. She's not backing away. She's not leaving.

She takes one slow step forward, towards him. And as she takes another, he sees her hands move. Then he feels them moving around his neck. And his head is leaning down to meet hers, their lips meeting again.

This kiss is slower, deeper. Her hands on his neck hold them together and he feels his hands moving to wrap around her waist without him making a conscious decision.

They're both pulling the other in closer but it only lasts a moment before that voice in his head comes screaming back and he pulls away. He doesn't move his hands, not yet, but neither does she. They both stand there for just a heartbeat, not wanting the moment to end.

But it has to.

"We're cursed."

Even as he says the words, he knows he's going to regret them.

This was his shot, perhaps the only one he was going to get. And he just cut it short.

He sees the look in her eyes as he steps toward the door, sees the hurt just below the surface.

He only makes it halfway out of the room before he stops.

This is crazy. Who cares about some bloody curse?

He stops, rubbing his eyes as he struggles to decide what his next step should be, where his next step should be.

And then he hears her. She's calling his name.

He looks up to see her staring down at the book on the floor. He steps forward, steps toward her.

He may be angry at the universe, at the place it's brought them to. He may be angry at himself, even as he moves back to the center of the lab. But he has never once been able to refuse her help and he's not about to let his anger change that now.